Farmers take strike into 2nd day

ABIDJAN – A strike by cocoa growers in top world producer Ivory Coast went into a second day yesterday with farmers burning beans and blocking roads to halt deliveries from the bush to exporters’ warehouses, exporters said.

The main cocoa farmers’ association Anaproci, which groups around 80 per cent of Ivorian growers, called the stoppage to demand a higher farmgate price and more financing for farmer-owned cooperatives. It vowed to carry on indefinitely.”There are no lorries in front of our warehouse this morning.The roads are blocked up-country and the merchants don’t want to take any risks with their lorries,” a buyer for an international exporter in Abidjan told Reuters.Buyers and exporters in the war-divided West African state, which produces around 1,3 million tonnes of cocoa each year, said the strike had an immediate impact on arrivals of cocoa from the bush.”The strike is carrying on today because our demands haven’t been satisfied.We’re going to block all the roads up-country and the main roads to Abidjan to prevent the cocoa reaching the ports,” said Ignace Kassi Koffi, an Anaproci delegate.Cocoa farmers on Monday protested outside the offices of the Coffee and Cocoa Bourse (BCC) marketing body in Abidjan and one group to the north of the city burned several tonnes of cocoa beans to press their demands.”We’re going to burn several more tonnes of cocoa this morning and in the coming days for as long as we are not satisfied,” Koffi said.The strike comes at a busy time in the Ivorian cocoa sector with the Oct-Sept 2006/07 season just getting under way.Nampa-ReutersIt vowed to carry on indefinitely.”There are no lorries in front of our warehouse this morning.The roads are blocked up-country and the merchants don’t want to take any risks with their lorries,” a buyer for an international exporter in Abidjan told Reuters.Buyers and exporters in the war-divided West African state, which produces around 1,3 million tonnes of cocoa each year, said the strike had an immediate impact on arrivals of cocoa from the bush.”The strike is carrying on today because our demands haven’t been satisfied.We’re going to block all the roads up-country and the main roads to Abidjan to prevent the cocoa reaching the ports,” said Ignace Kassi Koffi, an Anaproci delegate.Cocoa farmers on Monday protested outside the offices of the Coffee and Cocoa Bourse (BCC) marketing body in Abidjan and one group to the north of the city burned several tonnes of cocoa beans to press their demands.”We’re going to burn several more tonnes of cocoa this morning and in the coming days for as long as we are not satisfied,” Koffi said.The strike comes at a busy time in the Ivorian cocoa sector with the Oct-Sept 2006/07 season just getting under way.Nampa-Reuters